<p>"What if I don't want to die?" you say.</p>\n<p>"What if the moon does not want to rise? It will happen. I have seen it." She tilts her head, a ribbon of water traces her inhuman face. "I heard it on the wind, in the water, through the shifting of the sands."</p>\n<p>"You'll die tonight because of the storm. We saw it coming. Or you'll die tonight because of me. That one's your choice."</p>\n[[The storm will kill me?|what storm]]\n[[Why would I want you to?|want you to]]
<p>They sing promises and prophecies. They sing of the extraordinary and the banal, of betrayal and tragic endings. They weave a tale about the world, about the slow and steady tick of time, of how the waves will rise and wear away the very earth you were born on.</p>\n<p>They tell you that you'll die tonight.</p>\n[[You believe them.|die tonight]]
<p>The waves swell up around you. Back on the shore, you hear sirens blaring a warning, as if that will do any good. "Okay," you say. Better her than the uncaring storm.</p>\n<p>"You are going to die tonight," she repeats, grabbing your forearms. Her skin is rough, like sharkskin, and you can already feel yourself bleeding as she tugs you towards the water.</p>\n<p>And without warning, she pulls. The boat tilts and you crash into the waves. You can't see. Your eyes sting. Your lungs ache. Every place she grabs you is a bright spot of pain as salt water rushes into the wounds.</p>\n[[Struggle.|struggle]]\n[[Give in.|give in]]
<div class="titleblock"><span class="title1">SIRENS</span>\n<span class="title2">IN THE</span>\n<span class="title3">DISTANCE</span>\n</div>\n\n<div class ="titlebar">[[Start|intro]] [[About|about]] [[Credits|credits]]</div>
<p>You're several miles off shore, sitting in a beat up fishing boat. The air stings with the acrid scent of gasoline from the old motor. The waves are choppy and the wind is rising, but better to be out here than back on land.</p>\n<p>The sun is setting behind the island to the west. Lights are starting to come on in houses as people back in on the warm night.</p>\n<p>To the east is the ocean and the darkening sky. You came out here for a distraction. What useless idle thing will you do?</p>\n[[Go fishing.|go fishing]]\n[[Take a swim.|take a swim]]\n[[Watch the sunset.|sunset]]
<p>"You are going to die tonight."</p>\n<p>Without noticing, one of the sirens has come up to the side of your boat, gripping the edge with taloned fingers. She speaks, her voice a low rumble compared to the heights of her song.</p>\n[[Come closer to the siren.|closer]]\n[[Pull away from her.|pull away]]
<p>A single wrong move, a wave striking your tiny boat the wrong way, it would be enough to send you tumbling into the water, and then you'd be gone.</p>\n<p>Then you'd be hers.</p>\n<p>Even then, you barely make it as the sea pulls back to reveal the shallows way earlier than you expected. You leap out, running across the sand as the tide pulls further and further away.</p>\n[[Keep running.|keep running]]\n[[Look back.|look back]]
<p>It's too early in the year for storms. You tell her that.</p>\n<p>"You tell the storm that," she replies.</p>\n<p>You've survived storms before. You tell her that.</p>\n<p>She smiles, teeth like jagged rocks. "You tell the storm that."</p>\n<p>The storm has risen around you as you spoke with her. Even as the storm warning blared, you could ignore it in favor of the siren before you. But you can't ignore the ozone in the air, or The darkness in the sky as the storm rushes towards you.</p>\n[[Isn't there anything I can do?|anything to do]]\n[[Head back to the island.|reject]]
<p>You lean closer, coming face to face with the siren. Her eyes are an abyss, and you become it. You grip the edge of the boat, hands next to hers. The water this time of year is so warm, and you feel it radiating off her.</p>\n[[How do you know that?|how do you know that]]\n[[Are you going to kill me?|kill me]]\n[[What if I don't want to die?|want to die]]
<p>The storm warning went up too late. Even at this distance, you can see people rushing back and forth on the island. They're bringing in signs and chairs and useless things. Some of them are running further inland, though with an island this size, it hardly matters.</p>\n<p>You had a slightly earlier warning than the others, but her words doomed you all the same.</p>\n<p>The sea rises, trying to buck you off your boat, and back to her.</p>\n[[Move faster.|faster]]\n[[Move carefully.|carefully]]
<p>In the darkness of night, it's almost impossible to tell which way is up, and the storm makes it even worse. The roiling waves toss up sand and grit, and turn you around until the simple idea of swimming upwards seems like a ridiculous request.</p>\n<p>But that's never stopped you before. You break the surface, and find something to cling to. And you wait. Eventually, you tire, the storm outlasts you and you sink.</p>\n<div class="arrow">[[↣|beached end]]</div>
<p>The storm sirens begin to wail from the island. It's still early in the summer, and you can't feel any signs of the storm.</p>\n<p>You're reaching for the engine when you see the other sirens, lounging on a sandbar: hair like seaweed and fins like sharks.</p>\n<p>Using the wail of the storm warning as music, they sing:</p>\n[[Secrets.|secrets]]\n[[Promises.|promises]]
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
<p>"Are you going to kill me?" you ask. After all, that's certainly one way to be sure you end up dead.</p>\n<p>She laughs, the sound tumbles from her lips like a stream of rocks, polished by the sea. The other sirens turn at the noise and smile at you.</p>\n<p>"If you want me to, I will. Otherwise, the storm will take you."</p>\n[[The storm will kill me?|what storm]]\n[[Why would I want you to?|want you to]]
<p>She knows your decision before you do. Her eyes dart back to the shore, and she smiles wickedly. "I'll find you, in the wreckage. You shall be my treasure, and in the end, I will find you."</p>\n<p>Her voice is clear despite the whistling wind, and blaring alarms in the distance. This is no prophecy, this is a threat.</p>\n<p>Your engine roars like thunder as the boat speeds away from the laughing sirens on the sandbar, and towards the howling sirens on the shore.</p>\n<div class="arrow">[[↣|island end]]</div>
<p>You pull away quickly, your back hitting the side of the boat as you scramble for the edge. There is nothing but ocean around you, and while before that may have brought you comfort, the tide, you could say, had turned.</p>\n<p>She has domain of the waters, not you, and you are merely a trespasser.</p>\n[[How do you know that?|how do you know that]]\n[[Are you going to kill me?|kill me]]\n[[What if I don't want to die?|want to die]]
Sirens in the Distance
<p>You see the sirens lounging on the sand bar: hair like seaweed and fins like sharks. Their voices carry sweetly on the wind. The tide begins to steer your ship towards them.</p>\n<p>Behind you, almost like a drumbeat, the storm warning begins to wail. Meanwhile, the sirens sing:</p>\n[[Secrets.|secrets]]\n[[Promises.|promises]]
<p>You feel trapped, buoyed by the waters, tethered by the land. And then you hear sirens in the distance.</p>\n[[From the island to the west.|west]]\n[[From the ocean to the east.|east]]
<p>The water has soaked up all the warmth of the tropical summer sun. The salt water helps to carry you and your burdens. You only pull yourself out of the water once the waves get too rough for you to handle. Then you lie on the deck, not bothering to dry off. You're back under the gravity of the real world, and you feel so heavy.</p>\n<<include "sirens">>
<p>You rise above the water. Your lungs are as still as the air after the storm. \n<p>There is wreckage and bodies around you. You do not recognize them.</p>\n<p>In the distance, you hear sirens. Both of them. One of them a thin, useless wailing, warning of a storm that's already raged.</p>\n<p>The others are sitting on the sandbar, waiting for you before leaving to find the next storm.</p>\n\n<div style="text-align: center;">[[THE END|credits]]</div>
Thank you so much to my friends and writing group, with special mentions to Cat Manning, Sam Kabo Ashwell and Sonja Hornbek.\n\nBackground Photo by <a style="background-color:black;color:white;text-decoration:none;padding:4px 6px;font-family:-apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "San Francisco", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Ubuntu, Roboto, Noto, "Segoe UI", Arial, sans-serif;font-size:12px;font-weight:bold;line-height:1.2;display:inline-block;border-radius:3px" href="https://unsplash.com/@matt_dtd?utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=photographer-credit&utm_content=creditBadge" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" title="Download free do whatever you want high-resolution photos from Matteo Bernardis"><span style="display:inline-block;padding:2px 3px"><svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" style="height:12px;width:auto;position:relative;vertical-align:middle;top:-2px;fill:white" viewBox="0 0 32 32"><title>unsplash-logo</title><path d="M10 9V0h12v9H10zm12 5h10v18H0V14h10v9h12v-9z"></path></svg></span><span style="display:inline-block;padding:2px 3px">Matteo Bernardis</span></a>\n\nThis story could not have been possible without the awesome support of Adam Easterling, Alina, Ayuramy Alcala, Eva Anderson, Flameysaur, Liza Daly, Michael Potter, Peter Vaughan, and Some Strange Circus.\n\nIf you enjoyed this story, please consider becoming a patron like the kind folks above. Every contribution helps me keep releasing free interactive fiction, all of which can be found on my website, <a href="http://astriddalmady.com/">AstridDalmady.com</a>.\n\n<a href="https://www.patreon.com/bePatron?u=222406" data-patreon-widget-type="become-patron-button" class="patreon">[img[patreonbutton]]</a>\n\n<div style="text-align:center;">[[Return to Title|Start]]</div>
<p>You find that you can not go easily. Even after having made your choice, everything within you struggles to survive.</p>\n<p>Not that it does much good. The storm is upon you now, and the sea is a writhing beast, flailing against the rhythm of the world. The sky is dark, so even as you open your eyes, you can't tell which way leads to life and air, and which leads to the abyss below.</p>\n<p>Until you see her. Her hair is fanned around her, and she's smiling so gently. You open your mouth, to scream, perhaps? and she captures it, lips on lips, her teeth on your skin.</p>\n<p>She holds you still as she tears you open. The storm rages. The other sirens on the sandbar laugh and laugh and laugh. The sirens on the shore scream destruction, and soon everything goes still and dark.</p>\n<div class="arrow">[[↣|rebirth]]</div>
<p>"Isn't there anything I can do?" you ask in the face of the inevitable sky. You came out here to escape your life, not lose it.</p>\n<p>"I could take you instead," she says. "You'll stay here, warm, in my arms. I will keep you and the storm shall not touch you."\n<p>She is no longer strong enough to fight the waves, and your boat begins to rock.</p>\n[[Accept her offer.|accept]]\n[[Reject her offer.|reject]]
<p>"How do you know that?" you say.</p>\n<p>She tilts her head, a ribbon of water traces her inhuman face. "I heard it on the wind, in the water, through the shifting of the sands." </p>\n<p>The weather changes in tune to her words. The waves begin to rise, as she continues. "You'll die tonight because of the storm. We saw it approach. Or you'll die tonight because of me. That one's your choice."</p>\n[[The storm will kill me?|what storm]]\n[[Why would I want you to?|want you to]]
<p>You're so tired.</p>\n<p>Who are you to argue with fate?</p>\n<p>You hear her singing in the distance, the storm warning a back beat. She's still singing to you.</p>\n<p>You close your eyes against the dark water, and sink.</p>\n<div class="arrow">[[↣|beached end]]</div>
<p>You are buoyant in her arms. The ocean rages around you, but you are its eye, calm and centered as the world around you is ripped to shreds.</p>\n<p>She smiles as she holds you steady in the storm. Her lips land on yours, as the world goes hazy around the edges.</p>\n<p>You hope that she helps you breathe. The world goes dark before you can find out.</p>\n<div class="arrow">[[↣|rebirth]]</div>
<p>You wake up later, and do not breathe.</p>\n<div class="arrow">[[↣|rebirth pt2]]</div>
\n<i>Sirens in the Distance</i> is an interactive short story written for #mermay2019 by Astrid Dalmady. You can find more of my work on my website, <a href="http://astriddalmady.com/">AstridDalmady.com</a>.\n\n<span class="header">Description:</span>\nYou're sitting on a boat a few miles off shore when, suddenly, you hear sirens in the distance.\n\n<span class="header">Length:</span> \nApprox 1000 words per readthrough.\n\n<div style="text-align:center;">[[Return to Title|Start]]</div>
<p>Your engine struggles as it tries to climb up the side of a wave. There is no way to outrun a storm.</p>\n<p>As you crest over the top, a second wave crashes down upon you, capsizing the boat, and dragging you into the ocean.</p>\n<p>Thunder crashes, and you hear sirens, singing, blaring, screaming, laughing in the distance.</p>\n[[Swim up.|swim up]]\n[[Give up.|give up]]
<p>They sing secrets to you. Starting small, they tell you of stolen kisses beneath a palm. (Will you be able to look them in the eyes again?) Of your mother's quiet tears? (But you heard them didn't you? Heard and ignored.) Of thefts and betrayals and a thousand petty crimes against you and yours.</p>\n<p>They tell you that you'll die tonight.</p>\n[[You believe them.|die tonight]]
<p>The last mistake you make is looking back. The tide has pulled back to form a crushing wave, and you see her riding on the edge of it, a shadow in the darkened water.</p>\n<p>A the wave crashes into you, and drags you out to sea, away from land and thankfully away from her.</p>\n[[Swim up.|swim up]]\n[[Give up.|give up]]
<p>You wake up coughing water, bloodied and bruised, but alive.</p>\n<p>Though as you gaze at the carnage left behind, you barely feel that way.</p>\n<p>The storm warning still rings, a thin, useless sound now that the beast has come, destroyed, and gone. Your home is gone, your friends and family scattered to the winds.</p>\n<p>And in the distance, you hear sirens. Laughing.</p>\n\n<div style="text-align: center;">[[THE END|credits]]</div>
<p>You've spent your life on this island, watched a thousand sunsets, and yet none like this one. The colors of the sky tonight seem more vibrant, the saturation of the world turned up by 100%. There are even touches of green among the clouds.</p>\n<p>Except for you. You still feel tired, and desaturated. But perhaps the color will leak into you soon.</p>\n<<include "sirens">>
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Astrid Dalmady
<p>You know that only death lies behind you. She told you so, and you believed her, but here you are trying to run from the inevitable nonetheless.</p>\n<p>You make it past the beach, onto the patchy grass, already turned to mud by the pounding rain. The storm warning blares, the siren laughs in the distance.</p>\n<p>Having escaped the waves, the wind is now your enemy, dragging anything that hadn't been bolted down into the air. You have a moment, just one, to see the plank of wood flying at you, but then everything goes black.</p>\n<div class="arrow">[[↣|beached end]]</div>
<p>"Why would I want you to kill me?" you ask, but the world is answering for her. The storm warning blares louder, but you can tell it rang too late. The distance, the sky darkens in a way that seems too swift for sunset. You can taste it in the air now, the storm she foretold.</p>\n<p>"I'll keep you, she says. "Rather than let the ocean take you, I will keep you warm, in my arms. If you are mine, the storm shall not touch you."</p>\n<p>Your boat begins to rock.</p>\n[[Accept her offer.|accept]]\n[[Reject her offer.|reject]]
<p>You don't expect to catch anything this late in the day, but you cast off anyway, then prop the rod up against the side of the boat. The rod sways as the boat tosses in the turbulent sea, but you leave it alone.</p>\n<p>There is a certain pleasure in knowing that all you need to do to succeed is wait. You don't get enough of that on land.</p>\n<<include "sirens">>